Withdrawal Liability

Health Care Cost Consideration May Support Age Discrimination Claim. Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit overturned a lower court’s summary judgment ruling against a plaintiff’s age discrimination...more

An article published in Thursday’s edition of The Bond Buyer highlights a rising concern of counties, cities and special districts that provide retirement benefits to their employees through the CalPERS pension plan: That,...more

During the past several years a hidden liability has been lurking in the shadows. This hidden threat is known as withdrawal liability and is a critical issue that any employer with a unionized workforce needs to be cognizant...more

Pacific Coast Shipyards Pension Fund v. Nautical Engineering, Inc. -
On January 13, 2014, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (the "District Court") granted a motion to dismiss, holding that...more

The Ninth Circuit recently held that an employer who failed to pay $170,045 in withdrawal liability could discharge the liability in bankruptcy. Carpenters Pension Trust Fund v. Moxley, No. 11-16133 (9th Cir. August 20,...more

First Circuit holds that an investment fund may be responsible for controlled group pension liabilities of portfolio companies.
On July 24, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued a significant decision...more

I blogged last year about a couple of decisions in which courts concluded that various related companies were part of a controlled group of trades or businesses and therefore liable for the withdrawal liability of one of the...more

Under Title IV of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), withdrawal liability upon cessation of participation in a multiemployer pension plan and termination liability upon the involuntary or distressed...more

A federal district court in New Jersey recently declined to apply an equitable exception to excuse an employer’s failure to pay interim withdrawal liability payments while it challenged the demand for withdrawal liability....more

The recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in the Sun Capital Partners case may be of concern to private equity funds and other investment funds that acquire or invest in portfolio companies with...more

In a decision (Sun Capital)with important implications for private equity sponsors, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has concluded that a private equity fund can be held liable for ERISA liabilities incurred by...more

On July 24, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed a Massachusetts district court in a widely-watched case addressing whether private equity partnerships are "trades or businesses" for purposes of...more

I have blogged in the past about the reach of obligations to multiemployer plans and how other businesses owned by a participating employer can be held responsible for withdrawal liability based upon the common ownership. If...more

I have blogged before [May 16, 2012, November 21, 2012, April 23, 2012, May 15, 2012, September 5, 2012] about the liability that can be imposed on businesses whose union employees participate in a multiemployer pension plan...more